Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Housing: Water Supply

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether she is taking steps with Cabinet colleagues to help (a) make new build houses water efficient, (b) increase the level of installation of (i) water re-use and (ii) grey water recycling systems and (c) offset existing water demand in each region in respect of water neutrality.

Rebecca Pow: The 2023 Plan for Water details our roadmap to water efficiency, including our commitment to develop guidance for development design to minimise the pressure developments place on the water system, especially in water stressed areas. We are looking at a number of ways to improve water efficiency in homes, including developing minimum product standards (similar to energy efficiency ratings) for showers, taps, and toilets. Our roadmap on water efficiency in new developments and retrofits sets out that we will review the Building Regulations 2010, and the water efficiency, water recycling and drainage standards. We will consider mandating a new minimum water efficiency standard for new homes in England of 105 litres per person per day and 100 litres per person per day where there is a clear local need, such as in areas of serious water stress. As well as looking at options such as rainwater harvesting, greywater re-use and storage options across many of these actions. Our Plan for Water also sets out that we are working with the Future Homes Hub and Cranfield University in respect of water neutrality to “develop clear guidance on ‘water positive’ or ‘net zero water’ developments and roles for developers and water companies, including water company incentives”.

Department for Business and Trade

Small Businesses: Internet

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps she is taking to help ensure that companies that provide customer review services ensure the authenticity of such reviews.

Kevin Hollinrake: The government introduced in Parliament the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (DMCC) Bill on 25 April. The DMCC Bill includes a delegated power to amend the list of automatically unfair practices in the Consumer Protection from Unfair Trading Regulations 2008. The government will consult during bill passage on using this power to ensure that reviews are genuine, with a view to adding practices related to fake and misleading reviews to the list of automatically unfair practices. This will give greater clarity to companies who provide review services on their responsibilities in relation to consumer reviews and will allow enforcers to take effective action quickly.

Small Businesses: Internet

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps she is taking to tackle fake negative reviews made online by individuals against small businesses.

Kevin Hollinrake: The government introduced in Parliament the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers (DMCC) Bill on 25 April which includes a delegated power to amend the list of automatically unfair practices set out in the Bill. Government plans to address fake and misleading reviews that by adding these practices to the banned list following consultation this year. This will include where individuals are procured by traders, or are acting on their behalf, to denigrate another business by posting fake negative reviews.

Asda and EG Group

Charlotte Nichols: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether she has had discussions with the Competition and Markets Authority on a potential merger between ASDA and EG Group.

Kevin Hollinrake: Under competition law, the independent Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) is responsible for investigating the impact of mergers and acquisitions on competition. The Secretary of State for Business and Trade is therefore not involved with specific cases. The Government has ensured that the CMA has significant powers and expertise to investigate the benefits and risks of mergers in relation to competition within the UK.

EU Law

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, which regulations will not be subject to the sunset clause within the Retained EU Law (Revocation and Reform) Bill.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The scope of the sunset is defined in clause one and it covers ‘EU-derived domestic subordinate legislation’ and ‘retained direct EU legislation’.Primary legislation will not sunset.Clause 1 also contains the preservation power. This allows the UK Government and devolved governments to preserve specific pieces of retained EU law that would otherwise be subject to the sunset.

Ministry of Justice

Asylum: Housing

Kim Johnson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether any sites owned by his Department have been considered for use as accommodation for people seeking asylum.

Mike Freer: We continue to work with the Home Office to determine whether any Ministry of Justice owned sites would be appropriate to accommodate asylum seekers.

European Court of Human Rights

John Howell: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the implications for his policies of the debate on Implementation of judgements of the European Court of Human Rights, which took place at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe on 26 April 2023.

Mike Freer: The UK is committed to fulfilling its international human rights obligations. This includes the obligation to implement judgments of the European Court of Human Rights against the UK. Currently, only 14 judgments against the UK are still under the supervision of the Committee of Ministers. This is lower than almost all member States with similar population size. At the end of 2022, outstanding judgments and decisions against the UK made up only 0.23% of the total [14 out of 6,112]. We support the Council of Europe’s work to improve the effectiveness of the tools available to the Committee of Ministers in the supervision of the execution of judgments.

Court of Protection: Child Trust Fund

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many applicants have successfully applied to the Court of Protection to access their Child’s Trust Fund savings in the past three years.

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of using the Department for Work and Pensions Appointee scheme to cover Child Trust Fund accounts for disabled young people that lack mental capacity.

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what his Department's planned timescale is for simplifying the Court of Protection process for families wanting to access savings in Child Trust Funds for disabled children.

Mike Freer: According to management information provided by the Court of Protection for the period 2020 to date it has received and dealt with 70 successful applications where a Child Trust Fund is the sole asset. This does not include those cases where a Child Trust Fund may be one of several assets owned by the young person lacking capacity. The online process to streamline and speed up processing times for property and affairs applications was made available to all court users in February. We continue to review and revise the process and the court will continue to identify areas to simplify and remove duplication on court forms, including uploading to the online process many of the forms required for a property and affairs applications. It is for the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions to consider the potential merits of using their Appointee scheme to cover Child Trust Fund accounts for disabled young people that lack mental capacity.

Cemeteries: Rotherham

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what representations he has received on the management of cemeteries by Dignity in Rotherham; and if he will make a statement.

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what steps he is taking to prevent funerals from being cancelled because plots have not been properly prepared.

Alexander Stafford: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether the Government has had discussions with local authorities on the adequacy of funeral service supplier contracts with local authorities.

Mike Freer: I have received no representations on the management of cemeteries by Dignity in Rotherham and have had no discussions with local authorities regarding contracts for funeral provision.The Government expects all burial authorities to adhere to the framework of legislation and guidance for the management of burial grounds. This includes the Guide for burial ground managers which supports best practice, including in relation to the preparation of graves. The Government also expects funeral providers to adhere to the standards, codes of conduct and best practice established by the sector’s representative bodies.

Homicide: Families

Fleur Anderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent steps the Government has taken to improve support for bereaved families in homicide cases with regards to (a) privacy, (b) protection from press harassment and (c) mental health support.

Edward Argar: The Government is committed to ensuring families bereaved through homicide receive the specialist support they need to help them cope and, as far as possible, recover from the impact of these devastating crimes. This is why the Government funds the Homicide Service, providing £22 million to deliver the 2023/2027 contract. The Homicide Service supports families in England and Wales, who are bereaved through homicide both at home and abroad. The Service provides families with a caseworker to support their needs. This includes emotional, peer and advocacy support, as well as practical support such as advice on managing media attention and social media. Practical support may also include the provision of basic safety devices such as video doorbells. Where families have mental health needs, the Service facilitates access to NHS or other appropriate organisations for support, such as counselling and therapy. On 29 March, we introduced our landmark Victims and Prisoners Bill to Parliament, to improve victims’ experiences of the criminal justice system. Families bereaved by crime are entitled to receive services under the Victims’ Code, which includes requiring that criminal justice agencies respect their privacy. We have also clarified the Bill’s definition of a victim to include families bereaved by crime, to ensure they benefit from the Bill’s measures If members of the public have concerns about media reporting, IPSO, the independent press standards regulator, has a 24/7 helpline that offers support and advice. People concerned about breaches of their privacy, inaccurate reporting or harassment can bring a complaint against media via IPSO.

Prisoners: Literature

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department restricts the availability of literature to different categories of prisoners.

Damian Hinds: HMPPS does not restrict the availability of literature based on categories of prisoners. Chapter 10 of the Public Protection Manual (PPM) PSI 18/2016 outlines HMPPS policy requirements to restrict or control prisoners’ access to certain material, including literature, and can be found at Public protection manual: PSI 18/2016 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). Prisons automatically restrict every prisoner’s access to material which is ‘banned’ as defined in the Public Protection Manual. Prisons may also restrict access to other material on a case-by-case basis where it is assessed that this is necessary and proportionate in order to regulate a prisoner’s offending behaviour, to prevent crime, to promote rehabilitation and the reduction of re-offending and to allow good order and discipline to be maintained.

Prisons: Food

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, with reference to the contract between his Department and BFS Group Ltd for the supply of food to prisons in England and Wales, what proportion of eggs used by BFS Group in the service of that contract over the course of financial year 2022-23 were sourced from within the UK.

Damian Hinds: 100% of eggs supplied by BFS Group in the service of HMPPS food contract over the course of financial year 2022-23 were sourced from within the UK. 2022-23VOLUME% of VolumeTOTAL Eggs 9,109,080.00  UK 9,109,080.00 100.00%EU - 0.00%

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Advertising

Stewart Hosie: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, how much his Department has spent on radio adverts in each of the the last five years broken down by radio station.

David Rutley: The FCDO has not funded radio campaigns to run in the UK in the last 5 years. Information on any radio campaigns conducted by our overseas network is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office: Artificial Intelligence

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what information his Department holds on the number of times (a) ChatGPT and (b) other AI chatbots have been accessed on his Department's IT systems in (i) the UK and (ii) overseas missions in the last 12 months.

David Rutley: The FCDO actively manages all applications and services on its corporate network taking into account security and data protection risks. Authorisation and approval for the use of any individual application is subject to Departmental security policies and procedures.Chat-GPT and other similar products are not accessible from FCDO's corporate IT. The FCDO, following guidance from the Central Digital and Data Office (CDDO), is developing specific guidance to enable its staff to continue to work securely and protect FCDO and HMG data.

Seas and Oceans: Environment Protection

Alyn Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of negotiating a universal declaration of ocean rights.

David Rutley: The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) provides the overarching legal framework for the governance of the ocean. Numerous other agreements at a global and regional level add greater detail. These cover issues including shipping and safety, fishing, and environmental protection. The draft text of an international legally binding instrument under UNCLOS on the conservation and sustainable use of marine biological diversity of areas beyond national jurisdiction - the BBNJ Agreement - was agreed at the UN in March. This is a landmark agreement for biodiversity and will mean much greater protection for over 60 per cent of the global ocean. It is unclear what added value a universal declaration of ocean rights would achieve.

Climate Change: Finance

Drew Hendry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, whether it is his Department’s policy to set up a new Loss and Damage Facility Fund to support climate emergencies.

Mr Andrew Mitchell: At COP27, the UK and all parties agreed to establish new funding arrangements for loss and damage, including the setup of a dedicated fund, to assist developing countries that are particularly vulnerable to the adverse effects of climate change. It was agreed to establish a Transitional Committee (TC) under the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) to develop the fund and funding arrangements by COP28. The UK is one of the twenty-four members of the TC and has actively engaged with its work, attending the first formal meeting in Egypt in March and associated workshops. We are committed to making a positive contribution to the aims and objectives of the Committee in the run up to COP28. The UK has no plans to set up a separate Loss and Damage fund outside of this process.

Home Office

Asylum: Housing

Richard Drax: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she plans to take with Cabinet colleagues for the provision of healthcare for asylum seekers accommodated on a vessel in Portland Port, in the context of existing levels of healthcare capacity in (a) Portland and (b) Weymouth.

Robert Jenrick: For all asylum accommodation sites we consider the impact on the local service, and this includes the NHS. We will provide basic healthcare on site to limit pressure on local services. These plans are being actively discussed and considered with key stakeholders and local partners through the Multi-Agency-Forum.

Immigration

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many applications for indefinite leave to remain applications were made in each year since 2010; and how long it took on average it took to process those claims in each of those years.

Robert Jenrick: The information requested could not be obtained without disproportionate cost.

Treasury

Revenue and Customs: Repayments

Allan Dorans: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what checks his Department conducts to help prevent unauthorised third parties claiming commission on refunds from HMRC.

Victoria Atkins: The Government is committed to maintaining trust in the tax system and protecting customers. However, the Government is aware that some taxpayers face issues and feel misled when using companies that specialise in claiming tax refunds from HMRC. This service is provided at a cost (often on a no-win, no fee commission basis) unlike claiming directly from HMRC which is free of charge. Following a consultation last year, ‘Raising standards in tax advice: Protecting customers claiming tax repayments’, the Government is taking action to address concerns raised. This includes introducing new transparency requirements in the HMRC Standard for Agents, published in January 2023, to ensure customers are clear on the agent’s fees and charging structure. The Government has also introduced legislation in the Finance Bill 2023 to end the use of assignments in income tax repayment claims and announced on 27th April the introduction of a requirement for repayment agents to register with HMRC. There are many ways in which a customer can authorise a third party to act on their behalf. Following the consultation, HMRC is also undertaking further work to develop options for a more modern and secure approach to agent authorisation. HMRC monitors agents and challenges them when there are potential concerns about their practices. HMRC will take action if a tax agent does not adhere to the HMRC Standard for Agents including suspending claim processing until any issues are resolved.

Holiday Accommodation: Taxation

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an estimate of the impact of short-term holiday let owners who do not declare their income to HMRC on tax revenues.

Victoria Atkins: The information requested is not available as HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) does not make an estimate of the impact of short-term holiday let owners who do not declare their income to HMRC on tax revenues.

Council Tax: Valuation

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps are taken by the Valuation Office Agency when determining the Council Tax Band for new developments to ensure that the allocated band correctly reflects the nature of all properties within those developments, including where some properties within a development are intended for social rental and others are intended to be let at market rate.

Victoria Atkins: The statutory assumptions for banding are set out in the Council Tax (Situation and Valuation of Dwellings) Regulations 1992. In order to band a new property for Council Tax purposes, Listing Officers from the Valuation Office Agency will have regard to the age, location, size and character of the property and will look for comparable sales, which took place around the antecedent valuation date which is 1 April 1991 (England) or 1 April 2003 (Wales). As Council Tax banding is based on capital values, for most new developments where there is an element of social housing, the amounts of rents paid are not a factor that it is taken into account in banding decisions.

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology

Life Sciences: Investment

Jim Shannon: What steps her Department is taking to support investment in the life sciences industry.

George Freeman: The Life Sciences Vision set a strategic goal to make the UK the most attractive location in Europe to start and grow a Life Sciences Business.This Government is driving the largest increase in public R&D in the UK for a generation – from £15bn a year to £20bn a year in the next three years, and to £22bn a year in 2027.In March DSIT announced £17m of grant funding from the Life Sciences Innovative Manufacturing Fund (LSIMF), securing £260 million of private investment. At the Spring Budget the Chancellor announced Capital Allowance reforms which introduced a full expensing 100% first year allowance worth £27 billion over 3 years.

Department of Health and Social Care

Dental Services

Dr Luke Evans: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to his Department's publication entitled Our plan for patients, published on 22 September 2022, what progress his Department has made on increasing patient access to NHS dentistry services.

Neil O'Brien: In November 2022, many of the dental system reforms announced in July 2022 and reiterated in ‘Our plan for patients’ came into force. These included splitting Band 2 payments to ensure dentists were more fairly remunerated for more complex dental treatment and allowing dentists to deliver up to 110% of their contracted dental activity to further improve access.NHS England also reissued guidance on using dental care practitioners to the full extent of their professional skills and reiterated the guidance from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence that adults with good oral health do not need to see a dentist more often than every two years and a child every one year. There is also now a contractual requirement for all practices to keep their availability and whether or not they are accepting new National Health Service patients up to date on the NHS website which will help patients in accessing care. However, we know we need to do more and that is why we are working on additional reforms which we plan to announce shortly.

Primary Health Care: Publicity

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to inform patients about the primary care recovery plan.

Neil O'Brien: The Delivery Plan for Recovering Access to Primary Care includes the ambition to make it faster for patients to navigate the system and easier for them to get the help they need. To explain to the public the evolving nature of primary care and how they can best use the National Health Service, NHS England will deliver a major nationwide communications campaign, which will include communications toolkits for integrated care boards to develop their own local messages.The plan also includes investment for a new National Care Navigation Training programme for up to 6,500 staff, starting in May 2023. This training programme will upskill these newer roles with a good understanding of local services and the expanded range of practice roles and the customer service skills to effectively direct patients.

Primary Health Care: Finance

Rachael Maskell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the press release entitled What the Prime Minister’s Primary Care Recovery Plan means for you, published on 9 May 2023, whether his Department plans to provide additional funding to support the transition for other health professionals to take primary referrals.

Neil O'Brien: The Primary Care Recovery Plan aims to empower patients to manage their own health including by using the NHS App, self-referral pathways and through more services offered from community pharmacy in order to relieve pressure on general practice. The Plan is backed by a major investment with up to £645 million over two years to expand the services offered by community pharmacies, including a common conditions service and more blood pressure checks and contraception consultations.

Medical Records: Children

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment the Government has made of the adequacy of the availability of data on children’s health and care needs.

Neil O'Brien: No specific assessment has been made.

Northern Ireland Office

Stormont House Agreement

Stephen Farry: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how much funding his Department plans to allocate to fulfilling the Fresh Start Agreement; and what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of changes in funding levels on that Agreement's implementation.

Mr Steve Baker: The Fresh Start Agreement reaffirmed the commitment made by the UK Government in the 2014 Stormont House Agreement to provide up to £500 million over 10 years of new capital funding to support shared and integrated education. This funding is subject to individual projects being agreed between the Northern Ireland Executive and the UK Government. A total of 23 integrated schools and five shared campus capital projects are currently being supported by the package. The Government continues to work with Northern Ireland Departments on funding arrangements and projects under the Agreement. Funding allocations are subject to HM Treasury approval and Northern Ireland Office officials also continue to engage with HM Treasury on delivering the Northern Ireland Budget for 2023-24 as set out in the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland’s Written Ministerial Statement on 27 April.

Department for Work and Pensions

Social Security Benefits: ICT

Kate Osamor: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department uses (a) automated or (b) partially automated technologies to (i) investigate benefit claimants or claims and (ii) select or refer benefit claimant or claims for possible investigation.

Tom Pursglove: You ask: whether his Department uses (a) automated or (b) partially automated technologies to (i) investigate benefit claimants or claims. The department does not use (a) automated or (b) partially automated technologies to (i) investigate benefit claimants or claims. You further ask: whether his Department uses (a) automated or (b) partially automated technologies to select or refer benefit claimant or claims for possible investigation? Yes, DWP’s Integrated Risk and Intelligence Service uses automated/partially automated technologies to identify claims that may warrant closer inspection (or may need additional consideration), assisting in the prevention and detection of fraud and error. It is right that we keep up with fraud in today’s digital age so that we can prevent, detect and deter those who would try to exploit the benefit system and more importantly, improve our support for genuine claimants. Any risk of fraud or error identified is reviewed by a trained member of staff and this is only one of a number of verification steps which will have to be cleared before an investigation is begun or before a claim is paid. A decision to investigate a claimant is always made by a case handler who would take into account all relevant facts and circumstances. Where automated technologies are used, DWP is always committed to processing data lawfully, proportionately, and ethically, with meaningful human input and safeguards for the protection of individuals. We do not use automated technologies to replace human judgement to determine or deny a payment to a claimant. A human agent will always make final decisions and Equality and Data Protection Impact Assessments are carried out.